Diploma Requirements
Transfer Students
When students transfer into QSI schools, parents can expect there to be a student/family
interview and tour, a discussion about courses taken previously, as well as a series of
assessments. Each QSI school has its own placement and assessment procedures. These
assessments will help place the student correctly into QSI classes. Here are some commonly
asked questions parents ask during the transfer process:
Some Common Questions
Does QSI weight their classes?
What is GPA and how does QSI calculate it?
What documents does the school need from my child’s previous school?
QSI needs official academic records for all years of secondary education (equivalent of USA Grade 9 and
higher). Students who completed high school credit courses such as Algebra I in 13 YO (equivalent of
USA Grade 8) will need to provide a middle school transcript that identifies the course as high school
credit. If possible, include an end of year report or transcript that lists final grades for each course.
Narrative reports from teachers are also encouraged if available. If the student has additional testing
(MAP, PSAT, etc.), please submit copies of these scores with your admission materials.
For students diagnosed with a learning support need, parents will need to provide documentation of
the previous school’s learning support plan and any relevant professional reports before being admitted
to the school. It is highly recommended that records that are not in English or the local language be
translated into English.
Grade point average (GPA) is the sum of all course grades throughout a student’s secondary school
career divided by the total number of credits. You will find a GPA reported by each year of secondary as
well as a cumulative GPA on your transcript. Many high schools that follow a US-accredited curriculum
report grades on a 4.0 scale. The top grade, an A, equals a 4.0.
QSI calculates the GPA by adding the GPA of each unit and averaging them together and then dividing
by the total number of completed units of the course (note: most yearlong QSI courses have a total of 10
units.). Each mastered unit receives a grade of A or B. Example: In a course where a student earns 6 As
and 4 Bs, the GPA would be 3.60.
That would be 6 x 4.0= 24 and 4 x 3.0 = 12. 24 + 12 = 36 divided by 10 units equals 3.60. The GPA for this
course would be 3.60. The GPA of each course is averaged together to create a cumulative GPA for all
mastered units at the secondary level. The calculation would be as follows: 6 x 4.0 = 24 and 4 x 3.0 =
12; 24 +12 = 36; 36 divided by 10 units equals 3.60. Each course in turn has its GPA averaged together to
create a cumulative GPA for all coursework completed at a secondary level.
For students transferring into a QSI school, we will report all their transfer courses and grades on our
transcript. However, QSI only reports cumulative GPA from courses completed in a QSI school. It is best
to include official transcripts for all secondary schools attended when applying to university to show an
official record of all courses taken, not just courses recorded as transferred on the QSI transcript.
QSI does not “weight” secondary courses. Weighting a grade means adding an extra point or fraction
of a point to course grade based on the difficulty of the course. Given that most universities recalculate
grades for admissions and scholarship review, there is not a competitive advantage for grade weighting.